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We all have our vises….

Brent H

Brent H

Ultra Member
So I picked up this vise off the floor of an estate sale for $70. Those folks who forge their way through life will recognize it as a blacksmith’s leg vise.

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The stamp on the short jaw “ THOMAS.S.NEWELL WILMINGTON DELAWARE” traced to a sales firm that operated around 1830 ish around Wilmington. Evidently they had various items made and then resold them. This vise would be around the 1820 to 1840’s build. The screw box is roll forged and made up of segments brazed together. The screw is roll formed around a steel dowel and then brazed. The pivot bolt is tapered and has a left hand threaded nut. The only thing missing is the spring and one of the keys that retains the screw box from rotation. Plans are to build a new spring and fix the key. As with all things steel it will be put to service and beaten on.

Any info or suggestions from those that are in the blacksmithing game would be great!
 
Your stand looks great! What do you think of the Vevor 110 lb anvils? I am not looking to head into Blacksmithing as I have way too many hobbies but something to beat up on steel every so often would be good! I have a funky anvil/vice thing that helps with making some of the panels for the Opel but it is quite small.
 
Brent H said:
Your stand looks great! What do you think of the Vevor 110 lb anvils? I am not looking to head into Blacksmithing as I have way too many hobbies but something to beat up on steel every so often would be good! I have a funky anvil/vice thing that helps with making some of the panels for the Opel but it is quite small.
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For my infrequent use, I just made an anvil out of a piece of old railroad track. It works for me and was totally free other than the acetylene needed to cut it!

I keep watching for big anvils on Kijiji & MP. But ya, I'm not getting into blacksmithing either!
 
Thanks. I've never used a Vevor Anvil, but from what little I know about them, they'd make a pretty decent entry level anvil for smithing, and for your uses would probably be fine. For heavy smithing there is still no replacement for mass, and the bigger the better.
 
Brent H said:
What do you think of the Vevor 110 lb anvils? I am not looking to head into Blacksmithing as I have way too many hobbies but something to beat up on steel every so often would be good! I have a funky anvil/vice thing that helps with making some of the panels for the Opel but it is quite small.
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I have one and love it, can't beat free shipping on a 110lb anvil.
I'm no smithy but it is handy for wailing on something. I put mine on a couple of log pieces to get it to the right height with 3 wheels underneath to move it around easily.
 
Me too. I don't use it much. I got to know several of the local blacksmiths well enough to trade favours with when I was teaching sand casting at a local blacksmithing school, but it's always more fun to build your own if you can.

My unmodified chunk of rail could use some work to flatten the top and cut out a horn, then it would be more useful. Almost had a real anvil a year or 2 ago for a great price, but the seller backed out at the last minute. One day either fixing up my rail anvil will make it to the top of my list, or hopefully my kijiji and MP searches will turn up another good deal.

Sometimes I have to build new foundry tools our of steel - crucible tongs, pouring shanks, dross skimmers, etc. I use one of my furnaces as an improvised forge when needed. I keep thinking about building one that is dedicated to blacksmithing, but something like the ring for an A20 crucible pouring shank won't fit in most small forges I've considered copying, whereas while the big furnace does take ages to heat up, anything I've ever needed to heat up in it will fit.

Jeff
 
I keep thinking about those railway crawlers people use on unused rail lines I believe there is one on Vancouver Island out sooke way maybe.
 
Tom O said:
I keep thinking about those railway crawlers people use on unused rail lines I believe there is one on Vancouver Island out sooke way maybe.
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No rails out Sooke way. Our rails become trails. I guess our only rail left is the is the old E&N (Esquimalt and Nanaimo) which hasn't been used for years.
 
That might be it a cool replacement for Butler main hunters like a mobile tree stand heading up island can you shoot from the tracks I wonder you can’t from the road.
 
Susquatch said:
utting railway track with a hacksaw is crazy work! OA cutting torch makes child's play of it
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Ive seen it done...Old school RR section foreman lived in our small town. Ol' Steve could split a rail with 3 whacks of a sledge hammer & big chisel....rail cuts were clean and almost as straight as a saw-cut. Hit it on one flange then roll and hit on the other then a final hit on top or bottom.
Another note on my friend Steve...one of the toughest men I ever knew, his teen years spent as a Polish freedom fighter in WW ll... they dont build em like him anymore!!
 
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